The Collaborative Dictionary

To reduce to the condition of a widow; to bereave
of a husband; -- rarely used except in the past participle. [1913
Webster] Though in thus city he Hath widowed and unchilded many a
one, Which to this hour bewail the injury. --Shak. [1913
Webster]

To deprive of one who is loved; to strip of
anything beloved or highly esteemed; to make desolate or bare; to
bereave. [1913 Webster] The widowed isle, in mourning, Dries up her
tears. --Dryden. [1913 Webster] Tress of their shriveled fruits Are
widowed, dreary storms o'er all prevail. --J. Philips. [1913
Webster] Mourn, widowed queen; forgotten Sion, mourn. --Heber.
[1913 Webster]

To endow with a widow's right. [R.] --Shak. [1913
Webster]

To become, or survive as, the widow of. [Obs.]
[1913 Webster] Let me be married to three kings in a forenoon, and
widow them all. --Shak. [1913 Webster]

(Card Playing) In various games (such as
"hearts"), any extra hand or part of a hand, as one dealt to the
table. It may be taken by one of the players under certain
circumstances. [Webster 1913 Suppl.] Grass widow.
See under Grass. Widow
bewitched, a woman separated from her husband; a grass widow.
[Colloq.] Widow-in-mourning
(Zool.), the macavahu. Widow monkey
(Zool.), a small South American monkey (Callithrix
lugens); -- so called on account of its color, which is black
except the dull whitish arms, neck, and face, and a ring of pure
white around the face. Widow's
chamber (Eng. Law), in London, the apparel and furniture of the
bedchamber of the widow of a freeman, to which she was formerly
entitled. [1913 Webster]

Word Net

widow n : a woman whose husband is dead especially
one who has not remarried [syn: widow woman]
v : cause to be without a spouse; "The war widowed many women in
the former Yugoslavia"

Related terms

Derived terms

Verb

To make a widow (or widower) of someone; to cause
the death of one's spouse.

A widow is a woman whose spouse has died. A man whose
spouse has died is a widower. The state of having lost one's spouse
to death is termed widowhood or (occasionally) viduity. The gender
neutral term is widowed. The social status of widows has been an
important social issue, particularly in the past. In families in
which the husband was the sole provider, widowhood could plunge the
family into poverty, and
many charities had as
a goal the aid of widows and orphans (often, not children
without parents, but children without a contributing father). This
was aggravated by women's longer life spans, and that men generally
marry women younger than themselves, and by the greater ease with
which men remarried.

However, in some patriarchal societies, widows
were among the most independent women. A widow sometimes carried on
her late husband's business and consequently accorded certain
rights, such as the right to enter guilds. More recently, widows of
elected officials have been among the first women elected to office
in many countries (e.g. Corazon
Aquino).

There were implications for sexual freedom as
well; although some wills
contained dum casta provisions (requiring widows to remain
unmarried in order to receive inheritance), in societies preventing
divorce, widowhood
permitted women to remarry and have a greater range of sexual
experiences. The Wife of
Bath in Geoffrey
Chaucer's Canterbury
Tales refers to having been widowed five times, permitting her
greater sexual experience. In some other cultures, widows are treated
differently. For instance, in India there is often
an elaborate ceremony during the funeral of a widow's husband,
including smashing the bangles, removing the bindi
as well as any colorful attire, and requiring the woman to wear
white clothes, the colour of mourning. Earlier it was compulsory to
wear all white after the husband was dead, and even Widow
burning (sati or suttee) was practiced sometimes. However in
modern day culture this has gradually given way to wearing colored
clothing. Sati practice has been banned in India for more than a
century. The ban began under British rule of India owing to the
persistence of social reformer RajaRam Mohan Roy.

In other cultures, widows are required to remarry
within the family of their late husband; see widow
inheritance. This started as a custom to ensure that no widow
could be kicked out of her home and face a life without financial
provision, but it can also be used to keep money within the family.
In addition, it is an important factor in the transmission of
HIV within
certain communities, e.g. the
Luo, and is being challenged on human rights
grounds.